Monday, July 9, 2012

My June Glossybox just showed up on Saturday. For those of you playing at home, Saturday was July 7th. By the time my box reached me, I'd already been charged for the July box, a fact which did not sit well with me--but more on that later. Right now, let's see what was in the box.

This is not a picture of my box, however, this is the box variation I was sent. See, this month, two different boxes went out. One box had a full-size mascara, a body cream, and a firming facial moisturizer. The other held a body wash, full-size cream eye shadow, and a trio of facial products. Both boxes also came with a hair treatment, travel-size shaving cream, and a bonus perfume sample. A forum I follow received a virtual ton of posts from ladies whose boxes were ruined by leaky body wash bottles, so not knowing which box I was getting, I tore through mine like it was on fire, just to make sure I didn't have a pool of goo to deal with. I was lucky. While I did receive the body wash box--and the bottle's lid was loose--nothing spilled. Of course, by that time, I'd lost my chance to take pretty pictures.

Well, for the most part...

Let's start with The Good:

First Aid Beauty Smooth Shave Cream
I love First Aid Beauty. Loooove it. I'm gearing up for a vacation in October, and travel shave cream is always my most difficult toiletry to find. This trip, I won't have that hassle, and for that, I thank Glossybox.

Wella Hair Treatment for Fine to Normal Hair (Enrich)
I've actually used Wella before, but the Brilliance line, and I loved it. While I haven't used this particular hair masque, yet, I know it to be a good brand. This is also going in my travel bag.

OFRA Cosmetics Cream Eye Shadow in Never Back
I've heard good things about OFRA, so I was excited to find this in my box. The color struck me as odd, at first (and what is up with the name? Never Back? From Where?), but I noticed that, once it's dry, it's basically a matte version of one of my favorite Benefit Creaseless Cream shadows, Strut.

Strut on the Left, Never Back on the Right. Strut has sparkle, and was applied with my finger. Never Back is matte and was applied straight out of the tube. It's still slightly wet in this photo.

I'm also a fan of the packaging. Instead of a glass pot, I have an easy to squeeze lipgloss tube. No, I wouldn't squeeze directly onto my eyes! This just makes it a little more travel-friendly. The shade can be used as a primer, sheered onto the lids, or built up for full-color. Doesn't crease or budge. Does fade, but only slightly, and I didn't notice that until I'd been wearing the product for over eight hours.

vBeaute Skin Care Trio
If I could direct your attention to the above photograph. On the right, you'll see a vBeaute skin care trio. It doesn't really matter which tube does what, because there is no way I'm getting more than one application--if that!--out of the group. There's no way I can learn any more about them, other than whether or not I'm allergic. This disappoints me. I know it's a super high-end brand, but I'd rather have a usuable sample of something less prestigious, frankly.

Ahava Velvet Cream Body Wash in Hibiscus & Fig

First off, I adore this body wash. It smells heavenly, feels amazing, and is really just a joy to bathe with. The reason it's here, and not right at the top of the "Good" list, is the cap. There was no safety seal (Ahava's fault) and no tape on the flip top of the very loose cap (Glossybox's poor judgement). If you're going to mail a liquid, you have to take some precautions. Also, I can't travel with it unless I decant it into another container. That irritates me.

It's a 3oz. bottle. That's a darn nice travel size. Just make sure the lid's on tight...

The Bad:

A Perfume Organics in Urban Organic
This was a little bonus sample of a perfume oil. I know I should just be grateful that they were nice enough to send a little bonus sample of anything--and I am--but I can't help but wonder if this is a sign of things to come, and if it is, I don't want it. This stuff was wretched. There are people out there who liked it, but they seem to be far outweighed by those who, like me, tossed their samples directly into the trash. I had a physical reaction to it (the nice way of putting it), and Thomas said it was, "godawful".

Glossymag
Again, this was a bonus, but one that raised red flags. On the outside, it's a cute little beauty and trends pamphlet. On the inside, it's a 3rd Grade grammar teacher's worst nightmare, with typos, redundancies, and misspellings galore! Again, I just worry that it's a sign of carelessness.

The Brown Paper Box
Okay, I know that some of you are going to roll your eyes at this, but it bugged me. Plus, I want you to know all of the facts before you plunk down your hard-earned money. Think of my whining as a public service. Anyhoo, Glossyboxes are supposed to be shipped in their signature black and pink polka-dotted mailing boxes. Mine wasn't. Big deal, right? Well, kind of. See, I was expecting a black and pink package. Thomas was also expecting a package, but one that was *ahem* a little less girly (okay, so it contains fake fingers. What of it?). When the plain brown box arrived, he immediately thought it was his. It wasn't. Now, he didn't open it, nor would I have cared if he had. However, some people live with less observant people, and I can Christmasses and birthdays being ruined because of the wrong person opening a box that they thought was for them. I can also see a safety hazard. When that difficult-to-duplicate black and pink box shows up, you know approximately what's in it. When a random brown box shows up--when you're not expecting one--well, you should probably be really careful opening it. The only reason I wasn't concerned is that I'd just checked my tracking, and knew it was on the truck for delivery. Otherwise, I'd have been nervous.

The Ugly:

The Billing
No lie, a lot of ladies were double-, and even triple-charged for their June Glossyboxes. All charges have been reversed, and they have been compensated with Glossydots, but it was such an ordeal, it spawned its own thread on Makeuptalk.

Facebook
If you have a complaint, don't post it there. It will be deleted. You could be banned (at least one forum poster was). They posted a Terms & Conditions-esque set of rules for Facebook posts, but it seems to be gone now.

The Shipping
Um...I got my June Box after the 4th of July. That says a lot right there, especially since it was shipped on the 27th of June, and I was notified on the 29th, and told I'd receive it within 5-7 business days. Counting from the 29th, I did. Counting from the 27th, it took eight business days. Again, doesn't seem horrible, until you take into account they charged me for the box on June 7th (which I had to look up right now, since they haven't been billing at a set time each month. Surprise!). It took exactly a month to reach me. Not only that, but after charging, they never gave an estimated ship date. On top of that, some people's boxes shipped out several days before others. There are, believe it or not, a few people who still haven't received their June boxes. That's ridiculous. However, Glossybox has emailed its customers to assure us that, from now on, billing will occur on the second week of the month (still not exact, but better), and shipping will happen on the third week. With any luck, I might get my July box before August. Wouldn't that be nice?

So, you see how I'm on the fence with this one. On the one hand, the products are really nice, and you do get a lot of value for your money. On the other, the company has a lot of bugs to work out. What do you think?

I have heard some wonderful things about BB, and they're so much more reasonably priced. I didn't know about the shop, and that's a definite selling point for me (no pun intended). If anyone else is interested, I suggest checking out the forums on Makeuptalk.com. Those ladies (and gentlemen) know their stuff! Thank you, Ophelia!

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One quick disclaimer: I am a highly opinionated person, and all opinions in this blog are my own. I have received no compensation for my reviews. Just so you know. Okay, kids, that's out of the way, so go have fun!

About Me

I'm an actor, singer, indie film producer, beauty junkie, coffee addict, and recreational cake decorator. I have been known, on occasion, to associate with adorable zombies and various other cuddly creatures of the night. Thanks for hanging out with me!